Political structure

The president, elected for a period of four years, is head of state and appoints the cabinet

National legislature

Bicameral legislature (Congress): a Senate (the upper house), comprising 43 members elected for eight years and partly renewed every four years; and a Chamber of Deputies (the lower house), with 155 members who are elected every four years

Legal system

The 21 Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president from lists submitted by the Supreme Court, and are confirmed by a two-thirds majority in the upper house; the Supreme Court appoints 16 regional courts of appeal and members of the lower courts

National elections

Presidential and legislative were last held in late 2017, and are next due in 2021; Chileans will next go to the polls for municipal elections in October 2020

National government

Sebastián Piñera, a member of the Renovación Nacional party and the head of the Chile Vamos coalition, was elected in 2017 and took office in March 2018 for a four-year term